Occidental Petroleum Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:OXY)

Occidental Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:OXY) saw unusually large options trading on Thursday. Traders acquired 76,924 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 34% compared to the average daily volume of 57,390 call options.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Citigroup lowered their price target on Occidental Petroleum from $49.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 19th. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. They issued an “equal weight” rating on the stock. TD Cowen raised Occidental Petroleum to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. HSBC lowered their price objective on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $55.00 to $54.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 12th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price target on Occidental Petroleum from $44.00 to $45.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $47.48.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director William R. Klesse purchased 5,000 shares of Occidental Petroleum stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 16th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $38.98 per share, with a total value of $194,900.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 218,913 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,533,228.74. The trade was a 2.34% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Occidental Petroleum

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Tevis Investment Management bought a new stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum during the second quarter valued at about $356,000. Swedbank AB bought a new stake in Occidental Petroleum during the third quarter worth about $35,517,000. Gifford Fong Associates grew its holdings in Occidental Petroleum by 41.2% in the third quarter. Gifford Fong Associates now owns 171,429 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $8,100,000 after purchasing an additional 50,000 shares during the period. Adams Natural Resources Fund Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Occidental Petroleum by 1,642.6% during the second quarter. Adams Natural Resources Fund Inc. now owns 128,951 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $5,417,000 after purchasing an additional 121,551 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rakuten Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in Occidental Petroleum during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,072,000. 88.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Occidental Petroleum News

Here are the key news stories impacting Occidental Petroleum this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Market reaction to Q4 results and geopolitical support — several outlets report shares rose after the company’s Q4 announcement and amid Iran tensions, which can lift oil prices and OXY’s outlook. The same coverage cites interest in Kinetik-related transactions as a potential value catalyst. OXY Rises On Earnings Beat, Iran Geopolitical Tension, Kinetik Sale Interest
• Positive Sentiment: Active debt reduction move — Occidental launched cash tender offers and consent solicitations for several senior notes and debentures, signaling an effort to manage and potentially lower leverage; investors typically view orderly liability management as credit‑positive. Occidental Announces Cash Tender Offers and Consent Solicitations for Certain of its Senior Notes and Debentures
• Neutral Sentiment: Official Q4 release and mixed metrics — the company posted Q4 results (see press release); headlines differ on whether EPS beat or missed various consensus figures and revenue was reported lower year‑over‑year in some summaries, creating ambiguity for models and near‑term guidance. Occidental Announces Fourth Quarter 2025 Results
• Neutral Sentiment: Conflicting earnings coverage — some outlets (e.g., Zacks) reported an EPS beat vs. a lowered consensus, which helps sentiment, while other services flagged a revenue shortfall versus published estimates; the inconsistency increases short‑term volatility. Occidental Petroleum (OXY) Q4 Earnings Top Estimates
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst pressure and revenue concerns — Susquehanna trimmed Occidental’s price target citing near‑term oil oversupply risks; some coverage highlights a revenue miss that could weigh on sentiment if oil markets soften. Susquehanna lowers Occidental Petroleum (OXY) PT amid near-term oil oversupply concerns

Occidental Petroleum Stock Performance

NYSE OXY traded up $4.17 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $51.28. The company had a trading volume of 17,458,391 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,775,991. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $43.05 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $43.51. The stock has a market cap of $50.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.71 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. Occidental Petroleum has a fifty-two week low of $34.78 and a fifty-two week high of $52.58.

Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.31 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $5.11 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.02 billion. Occidental Petroleum had a net margin of 7.81% and a return on equity of 12.35%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.80 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Occidental Petroleum will post 3.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Occidental Petroleum Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.26 per share. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. This is an increase from Occidental Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 10th. Occidental Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 70.59%.

About Occidental Petroleum

Occidental Petroleum Corporation (OXY) is an international energy company engaged primarily in the exploration, production and marketing of oil and natural gas. The company conducts upstream activities to discover and produce hydrocarbons and operates complementary midstream and marketing functions to transport and sell its production. Occidental also owns a chemicals business that manufactures and sells industrial chemicals and related products for a range of end markets.

Occidental’s operations are concentrated in the United States, with a significant presence in the Permian Basin, and it maintains exploration and production activities in several international regions, including parts of the Middle East, Latin America and Africa.